Story:Star Trek: Federation Legacy/Stranded in Space
|author= |published=August 01, 2013 |stardate=83176.9 ( , 2409) |previous=" " |next=" " }} The U.S.S. Leviathan receives a distress call from the S.S. Azura, a Bolian freighter that is under attack by Orion pirates. Stranded In Space "Captain's log, stardate 83176.9. We are en route to Starbase 24 to pick up supplies and personnel for our endeavors. The war with the Klingons drags on, and at this point, I'm unsure that either side will come out victorious." Jason Fredricks leans back in his chair and yawns. "Helm, how long until we reach Starbase 24?" "About thirty minutes, captain," Ernie Hauser replies. "Good. Keep me informed, ensign." "Sir, we're getting a distress call from a civilian transport ship. It's the S.S. Azura," Hannah Freeman reports. "Audio only." "Put it on speakers," Fredricks replies. The speakers shoot out static. He turns to Lucas Wells. "Lucas, can you clear that up a bit?" "I'll try," Wells answers, trying to clear up the bad reception. The static begins to fade. "Th-s is Cap-ai- Brott of t- Bolian freig-ter Az-ra... we are under att-ck ... Orion pirates..." Fredricks strains to hear the message as it begins to fade into static again. "...need help!" "We've lost them sir," Freeman tells him. "Charlie, what is their current location?" "A little less than a light year from here, sir," Charlie Morgan replies. "Helm, Warp 5. Engage." "Engaging at Warp 5," Hauser replies. The Leviathan drops out of warp in an asteroid field. "The Azura has sustained heavy damage to her primary hull, sir," Morgan reports. "How many Orion ships?" "Six, captain." "Charge phaser banks. Load torpedo bays," Fredricks orders as he gazes out the viewscreen. "Aye," Jones complies. "Almost in firing range." "Distance?" "Thirteen kilometers and closing. Twelve, eleven, ten. We're in range, captain." "Fire!" Fredricks stands as he gives the order. The phaser banks glow orange as they send a pulse at the nearest Orion vessel. "Direct hit. Its shields are down to 82%." "Fire photons." The torpedo tube lights up as three photon torpedoes burst out and fly toward the nearby enemy vessels. The Orions return fire. The other three ships continue attacking the Azura. "Target their weapons and shields," Fredricks tells Jones. The Leviathan sends another volley of torpedoes and phaser bursts at the Orions. One of their ships explodes. "One down..." Wells sighs. The Leviathan takes a direct hit and there is a small explosion on the bridge. "Initiate defensive pattern beta!" Fredricks shouts. "Aye, captain!" Jones replies. A fire erupts on the bridge. "Somebody put that out!" he says, keeping his gaze on the viewscreen. A crewman grabs a fire extinguisher from the wall. He uses it on the fire and it dies down. "Captain, shields are down to 64%!" Jones tells him. "Sir... The other Orions are breaking off from the Azura and are headed for our direction," Morgan says nervously. Something on the viewscreen catches Fredricks' eye. "Helm, take us into that large asteroid over there." "Yes, sir," Hauser replies. "Jason, that asteroid is emitting a large electromagnetic field that may disrupt our shields. We can't go in there," Wells protests. "Understood," Fredricks replies calmly. The Leviathan flies into a hole in the large nearby asteroid. "The Orions are pursuing," Morgan says in a worried tone. "Good," Jason responds confidently. Jones looks over at him. "What are you planning?" she asks, looking suspiciously into his eyes. "You'll see," he replies with a smile. "Ernie, bring us around the other side of the asteroid and cut the engines." "Sir?" Hauser questions. "Just do it. Trust me." "Aye, captain." The ship rocks mildly as they enter the asteroid's magnetic field. "Shields are down to 44% and dropping, sir," Jones reports. "Keep her steady, helm. Bring us around," Fredricks says, still quite confident in himself. The Leviathan exits the asteroid and hides behind the right side of it. The Orions fly by the Leviathan and begin a sensor sweep of the area. "Fire!" Fredricks orders. The Leviathan spews out a volley of torpedoes. Two of the ships explode, taking out a third one with them. "That leaves just two more," Fredricks says, grinning. "The Orions have powered down weapons, sir. What should we do?" Jones asks. Fredricks is about to speak when the two remaining ships go into warp. "Next time they'll think twice before messing with us." Wells smiles. "Hiding in the asteroid's magnetic field? Brilliant idea, captain," Freeman says complimentarily. Fredricks smiles. "Thank you." He turns to Hauser. "Helm, take us within transporter range of the Azura." "Aye, captain." Fredricks turns to Wells. "Lucas, come with me. We're going over there." "Oh, so now you want me to come on away missions with you?" Wells says smartly. "When did I ever say you couldn't come?" Fredricks replies. "Well, last time..." "Last time? I went on one away mission without you, and you're complaining that you never get to go?" Fredricks shakes his head. "In range, sir," Hauser says, turning to face Fredricks. "Alright. Come on, crybaby." Wells makes a face at him. Jones turns to face them as they are walking to the turbolift. "Sir, if you are going down there, you may need a security officer... I could..." Fredricks interrupts her. "No, Tala, I need you here, in case any more Orions show up. We'll be okay." He smiles and enters the turbolift, Wells right behind him. They stand in the turbolift as the door closes in front of them. "Deck 4," Fredricks tells the computer. The turbolift begins whirring. "It's a good thing those ships were only frigates, or we'd be dead now," Wells states plainly. Fredricks nods at him. "So, how'd you know that was going to work?" "I didn't. I just trusted my instincts." "Uh-huh. And if your instincts had gotten us killed?" "Well, we wouldn't be standing here arguing about the possibility, now would we?" Fredricks smirks. "Hmph," Wells grumbles, showing his dissatisfaction. They enter the transporter room, where a small security team is already waiting for them. Fredricks and Wells step onto the transporter pad along with their away team. "Energize," Fredricks tells the transporter chief. "Wait!" Jhael Onika, the chief engineer, shouts, bursting into the transporter room. "Jhael? What are you doing here?" Fredricks asks. "The Azura took some pretty hard hits from the Orions. You may need an engineer down there." Fredricks nods in approval. Onika steps onto the transporter pad with them. "Well, if there's no further interruptions... Energize," Fredricks says. The transporter chief engages the transporter, and the away team disappears in a blue glow. Moments later, they rematerialize on the Azura's transporter pad. One of the ensigns scans the environment with his tricorder. "I'm detecting several plasma leaks, captain." "We'll need to shut them down before we get to engineering." They proceed down the corridor in the direction of engineering. "Sure is dark in here," Wells complains. Fredricks stops suddenly and Wells nearly runs into him. "What?" he asks, almost in a shout. "Shh! Do you hear that?" Fredricks asks, putting his finger to his lip. Everyone stands quietly still for a moment. Talking can be heard up ahead. Fredricks begins to edge toward the corner of the corridor. He turns his head around the bend. Wells and Ensign Vance L'eher inch up behind him. "What is it?" L'eher asks impatiently. Fredricks brings his head around to face them. "Orions," he says, grimacing. "We can take 'em," another ensign whispers loudly. Fredricks takes another peek around the bend, eavesdropping on the Orions' conversation. "...alright, here's the plan. When the Starfleet scum comes around the corner, we shoot 'em up real good," one of the Orions says to another. "Heh, Starfleet's so predictable," another one cackles. Fredricks presses his head back up against the wall. "Looks like they're expecting us." "I've got an idea," L'eher says, volunteering his services. Fredricks turns his head to listen to L'eher's plan. ... Meanwhile, on the Leviathan, main power has failed, and the darkness begins creeping in. "Computer, emergency lights!" Jones shouts. The bridge lights up slightly. "What happened?" she asks Morgan. "Looks like there was a power surge on Deck 4 that ruptured several EPS conduits," he replies. "Deck 4... The transporter room?" "Looks like it, sir." "Can we bring main power back online?" "Not until those conduits are repaired." "Then get repair crews on it right away. We can't afford to have our guard down with the Orions out there." "Aye, sir." Morgan exits the bridge. Jones turns to the stand-in tactical officer. "Just how badly are we hurt?" "Weapons systems are offline, shields are down, and long range sensors are inoperative." "Can we contact the away team?" "I think so, but we can't beam them back," Freeman replies, her face turning to a worried look. Jones sighs. "Hurry up, Vance, I think they're coming this way!" Fredricks says in a loud whisper. "Okay. I have a couple smoke grenades here, we could use one to sneak up on the Orions and take them down," L'eher replies, reaching into his satchel. "Do it." L'eher throws a smoke grenade near a group of Orions. "W—What was that?" one of the Orions says, startled as it lands next to him. "Grenade!" another one shouts. They jump away from it as it explodes into a cloud of smoke. "Heh. Nice job, ensign," Fredricks chuckles. The away team runs toward the coughing Orions and use the element of surprise to stun them with their phasers. They come to one of the plasma leaks. "Hold up, that's superheated plasma. It will sear the flesh off your bones. We have to find a way to shut off the flow," Onika says. "Jason, in here." Wells points to a nearby room. They enter the room, searching for something that will help them shut off the plasma leak. "Captain!" one of the officers shouts, running over to a crewman lying on the floor in the room. "Please... Don't hurt me!" the crewman cries. "Don't worry, we're friends," Fredricks replies. Dr. Julia Cromwell pulls out her tricorder and scans the injured crewman. "He's got some bruised ribs captain, but he'll be alright." Fredricks nods at her. "Sir, I think I've found a way to shut off the plasma leaks," Onika reports. "This console controls several systems on this deck. If I reroute this here... ah, there we go. Should be clear now, sir." "Good. Doctor, can we leave the crewman here for now and come back for him later?" "Yes, captain, he is stable," Cromwell replies. The away team proceeds down the main corridor. More Orions are up ahead, facing away from them. Fredricks motions for L'eher to follow him, and they sneak up behind the two Orions. They knock them unconscious with the butts of their phasers. "Come on," Fredricks says, motioning the rest of the away team onward. They come to another leak. "Another room, sir," L'eher reports. There are Orions in this room. "What do you want with us?" an Azura crewman shouts in horror. "Quiet, you," an Orion tells her. "Or would you like me to shoot a laser through your brain?" An evil grin rests upon his face. She covers her face and whimpers. "Hey, leave her alone," Fredricks tells him, walking into the room suddenly. "Ah, Starfleet. I should've known. Well, you're too late. We've already got control of engineering, and the captain is our prisoner." "You didn't think I'd come alone did you?" Fredricks grins. L'eher appears outside the door and quickly takes out the Orion pointing his gun at the crewman. Fredricks pulls out his phaser and takes out another. The rest of the away team rushes in and stuns the rest of the Orions. "Good work, team," Fredricks says. He then motions Onika to use the control panel at the other end of the room to seal the plasma leak. "Sealed, sir," Onika replies. "Are you alright?" Fredricks asks the crewman. "I—I think so." He helps her to her feet. "There is another crewman in the room just down the corridor, that way," he says, pointing back the way they came. "Alright, I'll take him to the transporter room." The away team continues down the corridor, where a third plasma leak is. This time there is no room, but there is a console on the wall. Some Orions are messing around with the controls when they notice the away team approaching. "Stay back, Starfleet!" one of them yells. "Looks like you're trapped," Fredricks says smartly. "We're not afraid of you!" another Orion says worriedly. One of them is still working at the console, trying to shut off the plasma leak. "Get that leak fixed!" the first Orion snaps. "Bolian technology is much different from ours, sir," the one at the console says. "Here, let me help you with that," Fredricks volunteers, using the lead Orion's distractedness to his advantage. He hits the Orion in the jaw with his fist, sending him flying back onto the floor. The rest of the away team follows suit, taking down the rest of the Orions. "Don't hurt me, please!" the Orion at the console pleads. "Oh, we won't," Fredricks replies, stunning the Orion with his phaser. "Alright, Lucas, see what you can do." "This console's damaged pretty badly, Jason. No wonder the Orions couldn't get it to work." "We've gotta get to engineering." "I know, I know. Just hold your horses," Wells replies sharply. He continues pressing buttons on the panel. "Wait, wait, here we go... Yes! Okay, that should do it." The plasma stops flowing in front of them. "Nice work, ensign," Fredricks says, smiling. "Thank you, captain," Wells replies sarcastically. Fredricks shakes his head at him. They proceed down to the end of the corridor and enter engineering. A group of Orions is holding Captain Brott and her crew hostage. "Come any closer and she dies," a menacing looking Orion taunts. A worried look rests upon Fredricks' face as he contemplates what to do. Back on the Leviathan, repairs are ongoing. "How's it coming down there, Charlie?" Jones asks over the comm. "Not good, sir. It looks like that overload did more damage to the subsystems than we thought," Morgan says, while working on an EPS conduit in the wall of main engineering. "We've got to get main power back online before more Orions show up." "I'm not exactly an engineer. I'm doing my best." "I don't care, just get it done." Morgan sighs heavily and then continues working. Jones leans back in the captain's chair and sighs. "Any luck contacting the away team, Hannah?" she asks. "No, sir, something is jamming the signal. The Azura was badly damaged in the attack—perhaps radiation from their damaged warp core is causing the interference," Freeman replies. "Keep trying." "Aye, sir." ... On the Azura, the away team has reached engineering, only to be confronted with another dangerous situation. "Take one more step and I'll kill her," the lead Orion states boldly. "Gentlemen, can't we come to a peaceful solution? I'm sure that..." Fredricks starts. "No! None of your tricks. I know your kind. You talk of peace only to get us to lower our guard—then you strike. A bunch of cowards, the lot of you," the Orion replies sternly. Fredricks turns to his away team. He silently motions L'eher to pull out his last remaining smoke grenade. L'eher takes the hint, and pulls the grenade out of his satchel, holding it behind his back. "Now, turn around, and walk back the way you came, slowly," the Orion continues. "How do we know you won't order your men to shoot us in the back?" Fredricks replies. The Orion chuckles. "You don't." Fredricks turns and takes two steps toward the door, then stops. "Vance... Now!" he shouts, leaping at one of the Orions. Almost simultaneously, L'eher tosses the grenade at the feet of the Orions, causing them to jump back in fear. The lead Orion releases Captain Brott from his grip and begins coughing as the smoke fills the room. L'eher grabs the Orion from behind and knocks him out. The rest of the Orions try to flee, but Fredricks and Wells manage to stun them before they can escape. The smoke begins to fade, and Fredricks walks over to Captain Brott. "Captain, what happened?" he asks. "We were following our normal traffic route, bringing goods to the nearby systems, when those pirates attacked us. There was no explanation, not that Orions are known to give them," she replies. "Captain! The warp core is going critical. We've got to get out of here!" Onika yells urgently. "Can you stabilize it?" Onika attempts to stop the warp core breach. The console he is working at buzzes uncooperatively. "No, sir, I can't." "Alright then, let's go." Captain Brott hesitates. "You'll never make it to the transporter in time. I have to stay behind." "But you'll die," Wells protests. "I know this ship well. I can hold her together long enough for you and my crew to escape. Otherwise, all of us will die." Fredricks nods. "Good luck, captain." Brott walks over to a control panel and begins working. "Everyone else, come with me!" Fredricks shouts, leading the way out of engineering. L'eher stops at the doorway. "If there's time, we'll transport you out of here, captain," he tells Brott. She smiles. "Thank you." Fredricks and the away team, along with the remainder of Captain Brott's crew, head back through the corridor to the aft cargo bay where they first came aboard the ship. Several Orions suddenly beam in ahead of them. "Hold up!" Fredricks calls. The away team stops behind him. One of the Orions taunts them with his fist. Fredricks pulls out his phaser and points it at him. The Orion laughs. "Give me your best shot, Starfleet!" "If you insist." Fredricks shoots the ceiling above the Orion, causing part of it to fall on him and three of the others. Only two remain, and they run away from them. The away team makes chase and Fredricks manages to jump on the back of one of them. He tosses Fredricks off, only to be brought back down to the floor by L'eher. Wells and Onika subdue the other Orion. Fredricks stands up, brushing himself off. "Well, that wasn't so bad, now was it?" "No, not at all," Wells retorts. They continue to the cargo bay where the transporter is. The other two Azura crewmen are there waiting for them. Fredricks taps his combadge. "Fredricks to Leviathan, ten to beam up." He receives a reply of static. "Fredricks to Leviathan..." "Sir? Is th-t you-?" a distorted voice replies. "What's going on over there?" "Th- ship took s-me d-mage, we are trying to r-pair the trans-orters..." "Hurry up, the Azura's warp core is going critical!" Fredricks says, with a grave look on his face. ... On the Leviathan, Morgan is working frantically to repair the damage to the ship. "Okay, try that," he tells a crewman. The crewman presses some buttons on his control panel. The lights in engineering come on, and power seems to be restored. "That should do it," he says with a pleased look on his face. There is a small explosion on the other side of the room. "What the hell?" he exclaims, running over to where it happened. Jones comes over the comm. "Charlie, what's going on down there?" "Another malfunction, sir, I'm working on it right now." He runs over to a wall panel. "Try it now, Anderson." Ensign Anderson again attempts to restore power. The lights come back on and main power comes online. Morgan smiles, pleased with his work. Jones taps her combadge. "Transporter room, beam up the away team, now!" The transporter chief initiates the transport. He presses several buttons, trying to boost the transporter's power. The transporter pads light up, and four Azura crewmen and two of the away team materialize. "Transport complete, sir, but there are still four more on board," the transporter chief tells Morgan over the comm. "I'm trying to transport them, but there's not enough power." "Standby," Morgan replies. ... Back on the Azura, Fredricks, Wells, Onika and Cromwell still remain. "We're not going to make it are we?" Wells asks. "It's not looking good, is it?" Fredricks turns to Onika. "How much time do we have left?" "One minute, sir," Onika replies. Fredricks lets out a large sigh. "Come on, Tala, don't let me down," he says, sitting down. On the Leviathan, Morgan is still trying to divert power to the transporters. "Try that," he says. "Initiating transport," the transporter officer replies. Jones looks at Hauser. "How much time do they have?" "I'd say between thirty and fifty seconds." "Can you get us out of range of the blast in time?" "I'll certainly try." Fredricks and the remainder of the away team begin to dematerialize. Fredricks looks up at Wells with a hopeful glance. "Sir, main power is back, but only partially," Anderson tells Morgan. "Transporter room, do we have them?" Morgan asks. "Aye, sir. I got them." "Divert remaining power to engines, get us out of here!" Jones shouts. The Leviathan moves out of the way of the blast, just as the Azura's core breaches. The Azura explodes, leaving nothing but debris. Fredricks stands up slowly. "Captain Brott?" he asks the transporter chief. "I'm sorry, sir. I couldn't get a lock on her signal. There was too much interference from the Azura's warp core." Fredricks nods. He turns to L'eher. "How would you like to be chief of security?" "Sir?" L'eher questions. "What do you think, Lucas? Can we trust him to have our backs whenever we go on a dangerous mission?" "Yeah, I think he can be trusted." Fredricks smiles. "Promotion granted, Mr. L'eher." "Thank you, sir," L'eher replies. "Alright, come on, Lucas. We'll be needed on the bridge," Fredricks says, exiting the transporter room. Wells follows him out of the transporter room. Fredricks and Wells enter the bridge. "Status report, ensign," Fredricks says, sitting down in his chair. "Minor damage to the outer hull, sir, but shields are only at 34%," Jones reports. "Captain! More Orion ships dropping out of warp. They're locking weapons, sir," Morgan says worriedly. "Hail them." "Captain?" Wells looks at him, puzzled. "Sir, they are hailing us," Freeman replies. "On-screen." The viewscreen flashes on. A female Orion appears on the screen. "Well, well, captain, I see you have... Dissuaded my men from finishing what they started. The consequences for crossing the Orion Syndicate are severe, as you know. And unfortunately for you, I don't take prisoners. Pity, you're very... Cute," she says, giggling. Fredricks smiles back. "Now, you listen to me. You intruded into Federation space, and attacked one of our cargo ships. It's you who will face the consequences of your actions. The way I see it, you have two options, surrender, in which case, I will overlook your intrusion on our space, or die trying to ransack a ship that no longer exists." The Orion seems taken aback by Fredricks' boldness. She hesitates for a moment. "Very well, captain, you win... This time." The channel closes. Wells looks over at Fredricks with an amused grin. "How'd you know they would back down?" "I didn't—I just went on a hunch that if they no longer had anything left to pillage, they'd leave." "Yeah, unless they decided to pillage us..." Morgan drifts off. "I gambled, and this time I won," Fredricks states, resting his head on his hand. "I just hope that we'll be this lucky next time," Jones adds. "Where to now, sir?" Hauser asks. "I believe we had an appointment at Starbase 24, did we not?" Fredricks asks. "Indeed, sir." Hauser plots a course out of the system. The Leviathan goes to warp.